Google denies report of involvement with Cambridge Analytica
Recent accusations over a data breach at Facebook involving Cambridge Analytica harvesting the social network’s users’ data – which both businesses have denied – have sparked fresh concerns around data security.
It has also brought back into question whether data was used to influence the US election and EU referendum.
Google and Facebook are often talked about in tandem, but Ramaswamy – unsurprisingly – was quick to differentiate the way his business manages data compared with the other half of the digital duopoly.
“Google is unlike Facebook in that it has always focused on one user. You as a user have a relationship with Google search or with Gmail, it’s not a social network,” he said.
“And so the kind of transitive data that appears to be in-walled in the Cambridge Analytica case are not things in the normal course of businesses when it comes to how we do things. We are quite a bit different from that perspective.”
The larger issue, Ramaswamy said, is going to be whether consumers understand what rights and responsibilities platforms like Facebook or Google have when it comes to their data.
“It is really important there are simple expectations for our users when it comes to their data,” he said.
“Cases like Cambridge Analytica will make people more fearful for how their data is being used but also drive more clarity about companies needing to be squeaky clean about being upfront with what data they have and how they use that data. That’s a good thing for the industry as a whole.”
RECOMMENDED ARTICLES
Comment
No comments found.